The Content
by Enchantress Nova
Summary: A demented Doll, a paranoid Snape and an Authoress who has seen way to many horror movies. Snape/OC Horror/Romance/Humour. My first HP fic - Enjoy!
1. The Gift

(A/N: My first ever HP fic. Sorry, but compared to my other stories this will be some half assed writing but my imagination should make up for it – this fic won't be a _complete_ waste of your time – and honestly I'm just writing to let off steam, I have no target for this story to achieve, I don't know what will become of it, but who cares? – I know I don't.

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters – _damn..._)

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Chapter 1

The Gift

Professor Snape sat in his usual seat as the Headmaster continued talking about dribble as the new term began, Snape's usual scowl in place as he half-listened to the elderly man's very rehearsed words and half wanted to kill himself, again, because it was the new term and classes would commence again. Damn students, the school would be better off without them...eh?

At the end of the first school day, after a whole-hearted meal, especially by all whom held no decorum by stuffing their faces, Snape returned to his room in the dungeons. Closing the door behind him he made his way towards the coffee table and picked up his latest read. The book was an adventure/horror story, normally he didn't enjoy fiction but that book was particularly gory and dark so he allowed himself to become engrossed in it.

In fact, so engrossed was he within few minutes that he didn't notice the house elf that had silently let itself in his living room until it gave a small cough. His eyes darted towards the common house elf with his usual death-glare and like all others it coward before him.

"Robby is sorry sir, did knock..." said the fearful creature, his trembling overwhelming.

Snape gave a small grunt and raised an eyebrow for the elf to explain itself. Robby reached into a raggedy old bag he had slung over his shoulder and pulled out a white box, quite big to him as the elf struggled not to drop it but it was really not much bigger than a shoe box.

Snape took the box from the elf and set it down on the coffee table, "It arrived in morning sir, not many details, just note..." said the still shaking elf as he handed a small pink note to Snape.

A curious eye read the brief words on the disgustingly girly note, swirls and love hearts decorated it and he had half a mind to burn it on sight.

'_Deliver package to Professor Severus Snape,_

_A story without warmth is doomed to heckling,_

_A story without want is doomed to worsen,_

_A story without promise is doomed die..._

_...The same could be said for a man..._

_Luvs!'_

Very confused and slightly startled by the odd and worrying note, Snape with a stone face dismissed the elf whom bowed an exit respectfully, also relieved to be away from the scary professor.

Snape sat back on his couch looking at the white box sitting on his coffee table, moments ago he had been reading about a man's brains being slurped up by a demon and now he was seriously regretting his choice in literature. Dread set into the potions master about what the content of that box could be.

What would it be? A cursed object, a monster? A ...he wouldn't know until he opened it.

Using his wand he checked for charms and any use of dark magic...he couldn't find any but that didn't mean there wasn't any, magic could do anything these days.

Realising it was now or never, Snape reached out a hand he refused to let quiver and in a fast motion threw off the lid off the box and readied his wand defensively...

_Nothing._

After a few seconds he steadied himself and peered into the box and there it was...a doll.

...All that for a freakin' _doll?!!_

It was a pale white porcelain doll, no colour in its face, a girl with long and wild black hair and piercing icy blue eyes. Its clothes were..._emo?_ Is that what the students called it? Its shirt showing its midriff and shoulders, black with a small purple heart on the chest; and baggy, black and white stripy sleeves that came down over the hands. A black mini-tutu with purple ribbons, black dolly shoes and a black spike studded choker around its neck...the thing was positively frightening. Snape didn't like dolls but if ever he had to he would choose this one. It was dark, like him.

Was this some kind of joke? Someone trying to frighten his with a doll! Probably some miscreant trying to play a prank on the seemingly emotionless professor...it had worked...but Snape was not about to let anyone know it.

Shaking his head and shaking off the nerves at the same time he picked up the box and closed it, he carried it over to his closet and put it on the shelf above the racks of black clothes. He locked the closet door and about to return to his book he decided against it, no death, no demons and no damn _dolls..!_

The rest off the day was spent making lesson plans and general preparations for classes, whoever the prankster was he would give them hell with these lesson plans...taking no prisoners.

The note still lay on the coffee table, bright enough a shade of pink to be seen from another room it couldn't be ignored. Maybe he could trace the handwriting or see who uses notes like these, he assumed it was a girl...he hoped it was a girl.

He wouldn't throw it away, so he put it in the drawer of his desk, not only did he think he could use it to find the culprit but the words on it were poetic and sinister, very Macabre, and whoever this girl was he would think she was quite the mystery.

Finally, in the late hour of ten o'clock, Severus Snape felt himself dazing off slightly so he pulled himself away from his work (as agonizing as it was) and readied himself for bed. So tired was he that he didn't even change his attire, he just stripped to his white boxers and semi-unbuttoned shirt and sombrely moved himself under his covers.

Some groggy thoughts of stupid students, and stupid incidents stupidly caused by stupid students and...stupid...st.....Zzzzzzz.......

Sleep claimed the tired man and the dark home-away-from-home looked even eerier with its book stacks and Wizarding equipment plastered with demented and angry looking shadows.

Yes, it looked like something from a horror movie but the room was perfectly safe, charms on the books and entrances kept harm at bay and for a long time the most hostile thing in that dungeon had been the grumpy man who accommodated it...but now there would be a new threat.

Inside the closet of the very morbid Professor Snape lay an evil like none before seen at Hogwarts, maybe with the exception of the young Tom Riddle, but no...this was definitely different.

Time passed by the slumbering man until it was 11:59, mere seconds to go and the power would be unleashed.

Would they survive?

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_To be continued... (when I can be bothered)_

_This will eventually be a romance...some weird twisted romance probably but I like them better that way._

_Please review; they're are my rewards for very little effort and watching too many horror movies. Please be kind._


	2. Okay, Slightly Mad

_(A/N: just in case anyone is wondering this story is set after the Chamber of Secrets and none of the other stuff happened -I know there are readers who actually care about that stuff *shrugs*- and I must say I was quite surprised by having any positive reviews XD)_

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Chapter 2

Okay, Slightly Mad

_...nudge...nudge...nudge..._

The distressed house elf continued trying to wake the slumbering professor, this man slept like a rock, and Robby certainly was not brave enough to use any more force than the small nudges onto the professors bared shoulder.

For twenty minutes now Robby had tried to wake the professor but to no avail, he had missed breakfast and both his morning classes so Robby was sent to check if he was alright and not sick or something. But the man was dead to the world....

With a small grunt the house elf gave up being discreet and delivered a hard punch to Snape's shoulder, but it probably wasn't that sore regarding his severe lack of strength. The professor finally stirred, his eyes strained to open as his eyebrows furrowed and a small pang in his shoulder brought him back to the world around him.

That was the last time he read a horror story before bed; that's for sure!

Opening his eyes slowly his vision cleared to show Robby peering worriedly at him, what the hell was going on?

After some harsh questioning to the intrusive house elf Snape finally learned about his sleeping in late, he had _never _done that before, something was seriously wrong and he didn't like it one bit. He ensured the house elf he was not in anyway ill or incapable of teaching the rest of his classes for the day. Shaking his head and pulling the loose shirt which had fallen over his shoulder back to its proper place; he again dismissed Robby and began to collect himself.

Third period was a free so he had time to think on his sudden tardiness. He had cast a charm so that he would wake more than early enough for his day and for some reason his charms on the entrances to his room were not working. Yesterday Robby had entered but he had just put it down to his book, but today? Today hadn't started well or even remotely understandable at all...and he felt that the rest of the day wasn't going to be much better.

With a sigh Snape removed himself from his bed and went to the bathroom, his shirt falling over his shoulder again but he just ignored it. Bracing his hands on the sink he hung his head in frustration, the term had just started and already he felt like pulling his hair out. After several minutes of just standing, Snape washed his face in the cold water, the refreshing droplets reliving some of his stress and instead of towelling it off he just draped the towel over his shoulders.

He made his way over to the living room and saw the girly pink not still sitting on the coffee table from the night before. Picking it up he read the morbid yet beautiful note again and placed inside his novel as a bookmark.

He would find the culprit...eventually.

His sleeping in might have given the prankster the impression that the cruel joke had worked but he wouldn't allow it, on returning to his classes Snape would be the most untouchable and ruthless wizard ever to walk the school...

Snape had dreamt of demons the night before, not quite like the novel but the mind is expected to reshape things, he never thought on his dreams too much before, but this one was mind-bending. Humans turned demonic and savage, uncontrollable and desperate, unstoppable and bloodthirsty...now _that's_ a horror story.

Really not wanting to think too long on it Snape moved to his closet to get ready for classes. Nearing the wooden cupboard he noticed something, the small silver key which was left in the key hole was now on the floor...strange.

He picked up the small key and unlocked the cupboard with some struggle, it was jammed quite badly and it took a powerful pull to eventually prise it open. But what was finally revealed proved his day would be a hellish one indeed...

Inside, everything was broken, boxes and books on the shelves smashed and destroyed to rubble and his black clothes were ripped to shreds, small bits of dismantled nothings littered the floor and even the walls were marred with scratches and dents...what the fuck had happened?!

Snape's eyes wide with shock as he took a couple of steps backwards, okay...he was scared now...

His heart was pounding against his rib cage and his breathing caught in his throat. Why was all of this happening, why now, and why him?!

It was then that something caught his eye, on the floor amongst the wreckage was the doll; totally unharmed and faced downwards. With great haste Snape retreated to his bed to collect his wand and with quick spell ha made the frightening doll levitate eerily upwards. This thing was going to be destroyed, no matter how crazy it sounded, Snape knew that the doll had done this, he just knew it.

What would have happened if the door hadn't been locked?

He didn't even want to think about it.

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Dressed in the same shirt, but having buttoned it up and slipped on some faded black jeans Snape put to work on a quick potion to do away with the doll once and for all. The clothes in the closet being his only _respectful _clothes he was reduced to being casual...the doll would pay; he hated being casual.

Having called Robby back to his room, Snape had lied telling him that he wouldn't make any of the classes to do with a sudden illness and that he would take the day to rest up – in truth, he had to do some clothes shopping before he could even be seen by the students. Not planning to lose anymore time because of some stupid girls' toy.

Shaking his head, Snape considered that maybe he had finally snapped, lost his mind to the cruel world around him and confined it to just his mind and the cupboard..._Nah! He wasn't crazy...NOW BURN THE EMO DOLL TO HELL! ...okay slightly mad..._

The potion ready and bubbling away he took one look at the doll still suspended in the air, it looked at him lifelessly but it looked at him all the same, a chill ran down Snape's spine as he peered into the dolls enchanting purple eyes and felt something strange well up inside his chest...sorrow. He didn't know why he felt so much sadness as he shared gaze with the doll but it didn't matter, the doll was going to be destroyed here and now.

Slowly Snape lowered the doll into the cauldron, the tiny porcelain feet dangling close to oblivion; he must have looked like a 12 year old boy who like destroying his little sisters things. Finally the doll was about to connect with the potion when a shriek crashed loudly in the potion masters ears. He turned with rushing adrenalin towards the noise to see Filch's cat in the doorway to his lab. The damn thing looked possessed itself as it hissed and spat animalistic promises of death towards him.

The cat must have gotten in with Robby and for some reason was freaking out on him; but Snape didn't care. At least the cat couldn't send him to an insane asylum for what it was witnessing of him. Turning to continue with the doll's demise, Snape tried to drown out the incessant warnings from the cat but it was too loud.

Just about to drop the toy in the cauldron the mad feline launched at him, claws, teeth and devilish intentions bared as it attacked him. Maybe it had rabies, Snape sure hoped not regarding the relentless cuts and bites being caused on his person. Pain and shock settling into the potion master as he finally fought back and delivered a powerful kick to the cat's side.

Immediately grabbing his wand from the table he forced the cat out of the door and out of his home. Quickly closing the door magically ensuring he was alone again, Snape leaned against the large wooden table and regained his composure. Panting at the near heart attack Filch's cat had delivered him Snape cursed breathlessly and soon his flushed face returned to normal and his pulse became regular.

The doll, the nightmare, the cupboard and the cat...all gone mad in just a single night.

Snape shook off the cold shudder and the whole strangeness of the situation, shopping now...worrying later.

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After arriving in Diagon Alley, Snape had hurriedly bought the robes and other clothes from 'Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions.'

Unfortunately, a number of troublemakers had skipped school to buy sweets and prank items and saw him in his casual clothes. Obviously it was his duty to punish them and removed 30 points each; this too was a negative...they were all Slytherin.

The day was only making Snape feel more suicidal by the second, and to make things even worse he couldn't get the doll's eyes out of his mind. This was stupid, so _damn_ stupid. He almost swore that he had seen them before which was both crazy and impossible...but they were so heartbreaking yet enchanting at the same time. Muttering curses under his breath with his head down avoiding any familiar faces, his hair falling over his face and unaware to the buzzing around him; Snape was suddenly met with a solid object.

He stumbled but didn't fall, if anything the object had been more affected as it toppled over. Raising his gaze and staring through his hair in surprise; he found that the object had been a woman. Instinctly he reached out a hand with embarrassment and saying apologies.

The woman reached out a beautiful, pure white hand and delicately took his in assistance to stand. Once on her feet she began muttering how it was her fault too and that she wasn't looking where she was going. Her voice was sweet and melodious which took him by surprise.

He couldn't see much of her, she wore heavy black robes which draped down to the ground, clearly too large for her and a hood hid most of her face. He could see her mouth and chin, her face just as white as her hand and her lips only slightly pink. She looked so dainty of what he could see and the sheepish smile that curled at her lips made him realise he was staring and still holding her hand.

Feeling totally humiliated despite the passers by taking no interest Snape snatched his hand away and tried to hide the blush beneath his jet black locks; a compulsion he has had since he was young. But her smile stayed there and she leaned down to pick up the bags that he had dropped but he uncomfortably took them himself and with a bow and a final apology moved on past her.

Having not felt so stupid in a long time Snape was wishing that she was not looking at him as he walked away down the street but it was all in vain when she padded up beside him. Her smile was subtle but unbelievably pretty and warm as she stood in front of him making him stop walking; confusion portrayed slightly through his usual tough demeanour.

Who was this woman, and what the hell was she doing? Hadn't he been embarrassed enough already? But there was no hint of maliciousness in her smile which only baffled him further. What did she want with him?

And then it all became clear...

Reaching out her snow white hand which was curled into a ball she gestured for him to take whatever it was she was holding, nervously he did and what he saw in his hand made his insides clench fearfully.

It was another note.

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_Wow, I'm actually updating...I RULE! _

_Disagree and die...I mean it! Oh and Review please (same threat applies) _

_X Nova_


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